OTHER NEWS - June 8, 1994

Businessman Pleads Guilty in Fraud: One of three Los Angeles men federal prosecutors claim defrauded 4,000 Latino investors of $10 million pleaded guilty to charges of mail fraud and making false statements on a loan application. Jose Castellanos, 35, admitted in federal court in Los Angeles that he and his partners in Fadel Group Investment Corp. led investors into believe their cash was being used to purchase and resell property and to buy companies. Instead, Castellanos said, the partners kept large amounts of investors’ money for personal use before Fadel Group filed for bankruptcy in 1989. Castellanos is to be sentenced in September. U.S. Atty. Nora M. Manella said the trial of partner Anthony Fadel is scheduled for August. The company’s business manager, Epigmenio Sandoval, is a fugitive and wanted for arrest.